BRIDGEPORT, CONN – Tied 65-65 with 13 seconds left in regulation, junior
William Ellis (Valley Stream, N.Y.) hit a jumper from the top of the key as the Queens College men's basketball team defeated the University of Bridgeport Purple Knights at Harvey Hubbell Gym.
Three players scored in double figures Thursday evening as the Knights returned to the wins column with a 69-65 win in East Coast Conference action. With the win, Queens improved to 6-5 overall, 4-3 in ECC, while Bridgeport moved to 7-12 overall, 4-6 in conference play.
Thursday's win saw the Knights end a three-game losing streak against the Purple Knights and the first road win in Bridgeport since head coach
Matt Collier's first season in charge. It is just the third win at Harvey Hubbell Gym for Queens.
How It Happened
Bridgeport would get on the scoreboard first before Queens tallied two straight buckets to take a 4-2 lead with 18:35 left in the first half. Both sides would trade buckets as the Purple Knights stayed close in the first five minutes of play. After a Bridgeport three-pointer gave the home side an 11-10 lead with 14:52 left, freshman
Shamar Chester (Queens, N.Y.) led a 5-0 run as the Knights took a 15-11 lead before another Purple Knights three-pointer stopped the scoreless run for the home side.
Bridgeport would get within one, 19-18 as the home side made two free throws with 8:19 left until halftime. Queens would go on a 14-5 run led by
Tyler Carey (Bayshore, N.Y.) as the Knights took a 10 point lead, their biggest lead of the game, 33-23 with 2:09 on the game clock.
But the Purple Knights would end the first half on an 8-2 run and cut the Knights advantage down to four, 35-31 going into the locker rooms.
The second half see-saw game continue as both sides traded leads. Bridgeport would open the scoring in the second half to tie the game before senior
Eddie Mehmetaj (Jamaica, N.Y.) and
Dion Herrington (Englewood, N.J.) layups gave Queens a 39-35 lead with 16:50 left in regulation.
With the game tied 43-43, Mehmetaj would give the visitors a 45-43 lead before Bridgeport went on a 9-2 run to take a 52-47 advantage with 10:26 left in the second half.
Trailing by five, Ellis would take control of the game as he tallied 11 of the final 22 points for the Knights. The Valley Stream native led a 9-3 run as Queens reclaimed the lead with 7:15 to go. But the home side would continue to match the visitors bucket for bucket as both teams traded leads once again.
With the Knights up 60-58, the Purple Knights would complete a three-point play to take a 61-60 lead with 3:48 left in the second half. But Herrington would find Ellis on the wing for a three and give the Knights a 63-61 advantage. However, Bridgeport would quickly tie the game before both teams went scoreless the next minute and a half. Carey battled past his defender as the Knights retook the lead, 65-63 with 1:44 to go. After the Purple Knights were unable to tie the game, Queens would miss their next two shots as they were unable to extend their lead before the home side tied the game once again with 31 seconds left in regulation.
With two timeout left, the Knights chose to bring the ball up and put the ball in Ellis's hand. The Valley Stream native would hit the biggest shot of the evening to give Queens the lead for good as he connected from the top of the key with 13 seconds left in the game. The Knights defense would force a miss before Ellis iced the game at the charity stripe making both free throws to give the Knights an important 69-65 victory in conference play.
By the Numbers
Queens had three players score in double figures led by Ellis who tallied a team-high 17 points (6-of-17 FG) and seven rebounds. While Carey put on a clinic at the defensive end as the Bay Shore native notched a career-high five blocks to go with 13 points (6-of-10 FG).
While Mehmetaj notched his third double-double of the season with 11 points (4-of-7 FG) and a season-high 12 rebounds. Harrington scored 8 points (4-of-12 FG) to with six rebounds and four assists.
Queens shot 40.8 percent (29-of-71) from the field and 20.0 percent (2-of-10) from beyond the arc, while Bridgeport was held to 35.7 percent (25-of-70) from the field and 26.9 percent (7-of-26) from three.
The Knights shot a season-best 81.8 percent (9-of-11 FT) from the charity stripe and won the rebounding battle with a 55-34 margin.
UP NEXT: Queens concludes January on the road as they wrap up their conference series against Molloy College on Sunday (Jan. 30) on the road in Rockville Centre, N.Y. The Knights won the first matchup back on Dec. 15 in overtime to the score of 76-68. Tip-off set for 2:00 p.m.
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